Method of making capital investment decisions concerning locations for business operations and/or facilities

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to methods for facilitating capital investment decisions and transactions concerning development, expansion, consolidation, location, relocation, merger, acquisition, and/or disposition of business operations and/or facilities using computer interface inquiries. The inventive method allows a user to select and compare business locations based on demographic and/or economic criteria and to optionally determine financial factors associated with operating a business in selected locations. In particular, the invention is directed to a method for deciding whether, where, and to what extent to invest capital for the development, expansion, consolidation, location, or relocation of a business, business operation, or business facility. For example, the invention provides a method for selecting locations for expansion or relocation of a business operation or business facility.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to methods for facilitating capitalinvestment decisions and transactions concerning development, expansion,consolidation, location, relocation, merger, acquisition, and/ordisposition of business operations and/or facilities using computerinterface inquiries. The inventive method allows a user to select andcompare business locations based on demographic and/or economic criteriaand to optionally determine financial factors associated with operatinga business in selected locations. In particular, the invention isdirected to a method for deciding whether, where, and to what extent toinvest capital for the development, expansion, consolidation, location,or relocation of a business, business operation, or business facility.For example, the invention provides a method for selecting locations forexpansion or relocation of a business operation or business facility.

Within the business community, the term “site selection” in general isused to refer to the process for selecting a business location (i.e.,the jurisdiction in which the business is to be located) and/or a sitefor the business (i.e., the parcel of land itself, with or withoutbuildings or other improvements). Herein, the term “capital investmenttransaction” or “cap-x transaction” will be used to generally refer totransactions stemming from capital investment decisions concerningdevelopment, expansion, consolidation, location, relocation, merger,acquisition, and/or disposition of business operations and/orfacilities. Choosing a location and site for capital investment in abusiness facility or operation, so-called “cap-x” projects, can be anarduous task. Small to mid-size companies may face this problem onlyrarely, perhaps once during the life of the company. For such companies,capital investment decisions involving location and site selectiondecisions can be crucial to the future of the company. However, due tothe rarity of the situation, the personnel involved in the candidatelocation and site selection process often have little or no experiencein making such decisions. On the other hand, larger companies may facecap-x projects often, perhaps even once a year. Yet, whatever the sizeof the company, site selection projects involve the analysis of enormousamounts of data requiring a great deal of expense and the allocation orreallocation of valuable resources, particularly in-house personnelresources.

In addition to the companies themselves, Economic Development Agencies,Economic Development Authorities, Chambers of Commerce, and similarcommerce promotion organizations (collectively, EDA's), and relatedservice providers also get involved in these cap-x projects. While, asnoted above, companies may face such projects infrequently, EDA's mayget involved in many such projects during the course of a year. Each EDAmay face stiff competition to attract or retain such projects and willneed to emphasize the advantages of its location over other locations.

The process of deciding where, for example, to expand or relocate abusiness, or deciding which of several business locations to close down,involves the gathering and analysis of data on a wide variety offactors. These factors understandably include physical aspects of theprospective locations, for example, their proximity to municipalities,relevant markets, and transportation routes such as highways, rivers,railways, and airports. Additionally, there are important economic anddemographic factors that should also be considered, e.g., local andregional taxes, local and regional regulations, the cost of utilities,and the size, education and skill of the local workforce.

Further, in selecting locations, the decision maker should consider notonly the present day conditions, but also how these conditions mightchange in the foreseeable future. For example, while a particularlocation may be a superior candidate for relocation/expansion based onthe estimated cost for start-up and first year operations, projectedincreases in costs for taxes and/or utilities could make the candidateinferior in comparison to others. Alternatively, projected demographicdata night indicate that the location site will be unable to handleplanned future work force expansion.

During the course of such cap-x projects, selection criteria may changedramatically. In other words, the data, project specifications, decisionchoices, decision criteria, and business projections that go into acapital investment decision-making process are all very dynamic. Any oneor more of these may change, and they may change once or frequently.Under traditional methods, a report or other work product of internalproject teams, outside consultants, or other hired professionals israther rigid, static, expensive (in terms of human resource allocation,time, and money), and, thus, is not readily adaptable to changes. Thetraditional methods' work product thus becomes “stale” very quickly oncea change occurs. Redoing that work product to update, adapt, orotherwise modify the data is an expensive process, one that might needto be repeated over and over again. For example, initially a companymight seek to have a location which has close access to a major highway.But, then, during the course of the project, the business model changesand the new focus of the search might be to have a location which is asclose as possible to an airport. As a result, the project team may needto completely shift direction and discard weeks or even months ofresearch and analysis.

Thus, the process of investigating and comparing business locations is acomplicated one. In light of the large amount of data to be collectedand evaluated, the need to consider changes in data, and the need totake future operations into consideration, the process is oftencumbersome, confusing and expensive. Further, in the early stages of aproject, its viability is often uncertain. For example, after theexpenditure of much up-front human resource allocation, time and money,a project may get placed on hold for long periods or even be canceled.As a result, a company may be reluctant to invest significant resourcesduring the early stages of the projects. However, because of thecomplexity of the project, it may not be feasible to perform sufficientpreliminary investigations without allocating substantial resources.

Also, the data available on different locations may come in manydifferent forms. Under traditional methods, performing apples-to-applescomparisons of demographic and economic data, other locationalattributes, and financial results from various decision choices can bedifficult if not impossible.

In the past, a company faced with such a capital investment projectcould set up an internal project team to perform the data collection,analysis, and investigation to arrive at a list of candidate locationsand available existing business operations, facilities, or other sites.Alternatively or additionally, a company might hire consultants toassist with these tasks. In either case, the scope of the information tobe collected and analyzed is enormous and there are numerous choices tobe a made in performing the analysis. With outside consultants,associated costs may become quite high since such projects can easilycontinue for months or even years. On the other hand, due to theenormity of the task, internal project teams can often be quickly andeasily overwhelmed. The resultant disruptions, discontinuity, and/orproductivity loss from reallocating valuable internal personnelresources can be quite significant.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, an object of the invention is to provide a method whichquickly and efficiently provides a list, based on selected criteria, ofcompetitive locations for a business operation or business facility.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a method whichquickly and efficiently provides a list of competitive locations andcapital investment transactions for a business operation or businessfacility, with the choices on the list being ranked and scored accordingto weighted or unweighted decision criteria, regardless of whether thelist is based in whole or part on selected criteria.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method that screens datafrom a database of potential locations using one or more selecteddecision criteria and provides a comparison of the data on candidatelocations for business operations or facilities.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method of estimating therelative costs of doing business, for example, start-up and operatingcosts, for business location and capital investment candidates, andoptionally comparing the relative costs of doing business associatedwith these candidates.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method for comparingbusiness location or transaction candidates, relative to each other, inone or more business scenarios, e.g. sets of capital budget, operatingbudget, utilities and other input consumption, and/or employmentprojections.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method for comparing(or “what if'ing”) candidates for business locations and capitalinvestment transactions under various conditions with respect tochanges, real or hypothetical, in, for example, business plans, marketconditions, project specifications, cost structure, economic incentivepackages, statutes and regulations.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a method of siteselection for business development, expansion, consolidation, locationor relocation which is more efficient in terms of time and costs and/ormore flexible in handling changes in data, such as economic anddemographic data, than prior methods of making site selectiondeterminations.

A further object of the invention is to provide an EDA with acompetitive benchmarking tool to compare its location's attributes,advantages, and disadvantages to those of other locations and/or tomodel real or hypothetical changes in the location's attributes,advantages, and disadvantages.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method fordemonstrating and presenting the competitive strengths and/or weaknessesof a given location and the competitive strengths and/or weaknesses ofother locations with respect to a capital investment project.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method for determiningwhich types of companies or industries would fare well if they were tostart doing business, or continue to do business, in a given location.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method for competitivebenchmarking whereby a company can compare its cost structures againstthose of its competitors, and further to model real or hypotheticalchanges in those cost structures.

A further object of the invention is to provide a method fordetermining, in a downsizing or consolidation scenario, which one ormore operations or facilities to close down, which one or more to keepopen, and/or whether new or expanded existing operations or facilitiesare in order to replace the closed ones and/or to augment the remainingones, and where to do so.

Upon further study of the specification and appended claims, furtherobjects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to thoseskilled in the art.

These objects are achieved by the inventive method for selecting,comparing and/or analyzing business locations and capital investmentchoices, utilizing a software program and database.

In accordance with one embodiment, the inventive method comprises:

-   -   (a) Selecting a geographic scope for the search for a potential        location (such as the United States, Eastern United States, New        England region of the United States, Maine, etc.) in which to        make a capital investment in a business operation or facility;    -   (b) Inputting a data set containing one or more search criteria        of demographic and/or economic data and one or more search        criteria of demographic data and/or economic data for screening        potential locations (e.g., unemployment rates and other labor        force statistics, proximity to airports or interstate highways,        tax rates, percentages of white collar and blue collar        employment, quality of life factors, etc.);    -   (c) Screening a database containing a listing of possible        locations within the selected geographic scope (e.g., a listing        of all counties within the United States) with a set of criteria        regarding demographic and/or economic data associated with each        location to determine which locations satisfy the search        criteria; and    -   (d) Displaying a list of candidate locations that satisfy the        search criteria.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Editing the list of candidate locations to: delete one or more        locations; add one or more locations selected from the database        (irrespective of whether they meet any of the search criteria);        and/or input new candidate locations (irrespective of whether        they meet any of the search criteria).

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Saving the list (edited or unedited) of candidate locations,        along with their associated economic and/or demographic data, in        a Candidate Folder.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Creating a Candidate Matrix which displays all or selected        locations from a Candidate Folder and their associated economic        and/or demographic data in a side-by-side format.

According to a further aspect, there is provided a method comprising:

-   -   (a) Inputting a data set containing one or more demographic        and/or economic criteria and one or more search criteria of        demographic data and/or economic data for ranking locations        (e.g., unemployment rates, high school graduation rates, and/or        proximity to a sea-port);    -   (b) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or more of        candidate locations contained within a Candidate Folder        according to how well each location satisfies each of the        individual search criterion;    -   (c) Displaying the candidate locations in ranked order;    -   (d) Optionally displaying an overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion for each candidate in the ranking wherein        the scores reflect how well the candidates satisfy all of the        criteria and/or individual criterion;    -   (e) Optionally displaying the overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion of each candidate in the ranking based on a        weighting, selected by the user, of each of the individual        criterion's relative importance in the decision-making, e.g.,        from most important to least important, and/or    -   (f) Optionally displaying the score each candidate received        based on the relative importance of the collective search        criteria compared to the financial result.

According to a further aspect, there is provided a method comprising:

-   -   (a) Inputting a data set containing one or more demographic        and/or economic criteria and one or more search criteria of        demographic data and/or economic data for ranking locations        (e.g., unemployment rates, high school graduation rates, and/or        proximity to a sea-port);    -   (b) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or more of        candidate locations contained within a Candidate Folder        dependent on how well each location satisfies each of the        individual search criterion;    -   (c) Displaying the candidate locations in ranked order;    -   (d1) Before performing step (b), selecting the weighting of        individual ranking search or selection criteria; or    -   (d2) After performing step (c), selecting the weighting of        individual ranking search or selection criteria and repeating        steps (b)-(c);    -   (e) Optionally displaying an overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion for each candidate in the ranking wherein        the scores reflect how well the candidates satisfy all of the        criteria and/or individual criterion;    -   (f) Optionally displaying the overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion of each candidate in the rankling based on a        weighting, selected by the user, of each of the individual        criterion's relative importance in the decision-making, e.g.,        from most important to least important; and    -   (g) Optionally displaying the score each candidate received        based on the relative importance of the collective search        criteria compared to the financial result.

According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided amethod comprising:

-   -   (a) Inputting a data set containing one or more demographic        and/or economic criteria and one or more search criteria of        demographic data and/or economic data for, searching or        selecting locations (e.g., unemployment rates, high school        graduation rates, and/or proximity to a sea-port);    -   (b) Screening a database or a Candidate Folder containing a        listing of candidate locations with a set of criteria regarding        demographic and/or economic data associated with each location        to determine how well each location satisfies the search or        selection criteria;    -   (c) Generating a ranking of the candidate locations according to        how well each location satisfies the search or selection        criteria;    -   (d) Optionally, editing the list of candidate locations to:        delete one or more locations; add one or more locations selected        from the database (irrespective of whether they meet any of the        search criteria); and/or input new candidate locations        (irrespective of whether they meet any of the search criteria);        and    -   (f) Displaying each candidate location and its associated data        relating to the ranking and, optionally, listing the candidates        in a predetermined order (e.g., sorted by ranking).

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   (a) Inputting a data set containing one or more demographic        and/or economic criteria and one or more search criteria of        demographic data and/or economic data for ranking locations        (e.g., unemployment rates, high school graduation rates, and/or        proximity to a sea-port);    -   (b) Screening a database or a Candidate Folder containing a        listing of candidate locations with a set of criteria regarding        demographic and/or economic data associated with each location        to determine how each location satisfies the ranking criteria;    -   (c) Generating a ranking of the candidate locations according to        how well each location satisfies the ranking criteria;    -   (d) Displaying each candidate location and it associated data        relating to the ranking criteria and, optionally, listing the        candidates in a predetermined order (e.g., sorted by ranking);        and    -   (e1) Before performing step (b), selecting the weighting of        individual ranking criteria; or    -   (e2) After performing step (c), selecting the weighting of        individual ranking criteria and repeating steps (b)-(d); or    -   (e3) After performing step (d), selecting or changing the        weighting of individual ranking criteria and repeating steps        (b)-(d).

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

Inputting user identification information (e.g., company name, address,type of industry, etc.) and/or specifications on the capital investmentproject (e.g., utility usage, size of land parcel and/or building,budgeted capital investment amounts, workforce composition, etc.).

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Inputting at least one set of project specifications (e.g., size        of desired building, size of desired land parcel, workforce size        and composition, utility requirements, proximities to airport        and highway, and the like), and/or inputting at least one set of        business scenario data (e.g., sets of capital budget, operating        budget, utilities and other input consumption, and/or employment        projections).

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided amethod comprising:

-   -   (a) Creating a Candidate Folder containing a group of candidate        locations and their associated demographic and/or economic data        by screening a database using one or more search criteria, or by        manually selecting candidate locations from a database, or a        combination thereof,    -   (b) Before or after (a), inputting at least one set of project        specifications (e.g., size of desired building, size of desired        land parcel, workforce size and composition, utility        requirements, proximities to airport and highway, and the like),        and/or inputting at least one set of business scenario data        (e.g., sets of capital budget, operating budget, utilities and        other input consumption, and/or employment projections),    -   (c) Selecting one or more candidate locations within said        candidate folder and one or more of said business scenarios for        use in financial calculations,    -   (d) Performing one or more financial calculations on the        selected business scenario(s) wherein said financial        calculations are selected from:        -   Direct Community Benefit Report;        -   Indirect Community Benefit Report;        -   Incentive Package Report;        -   Best of all Worlds analysis;        -   Detailed Financial calculations; and        -   Financial Summary calculations.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided amethod comprising:

-   -   (a) Selecting a geographic scope for the search for a potential        location (such as the United States, Eastern United States, New        England region of the United States, Maine, etc.) in which to        make a capital investment in a business operation or facility;    -   (b) Inputting a data set containing one or more search criteria        of demographic and/or economic data and one or more search        criteria of demographic data and/or economic data for screening        potential locations (e.g., unemployment rates and other labor        force statistics, proximity to airports or interstate highways,        tax rates, percentages of white collar and blue collar        employment, quality of life factors, etc.);    -   (c) Screening a database containing a listing of possible        locations within the selected geographic scope (e.g., a listing        of all counties within the United States) with a set of criteria        regarding demographic and/or economic data associated with each        location to determine which locations satisfy the search        criteria;    -   (d) Displaying a list of candidate locations that satisfy the        search criteria;    -   (e) Optionally editing the list of candidate locations to:        delete one or more locations; add one or more locations-selected        from the database (irrespective of whether they meet any of the        search criteria); and/or input new candidate locations        (irrespective of whether they meet any of the search criteria);    -   (f) Saving the list (edited or unedited) of candidate locations,        along with their associated economic and/or demographic data, in        a Candidate Folder;    -   (g) Inputting at least one set of project specifications (e.g.,        size of desired building, size of desired land parcel, workforce        size and composition, utility requirements, proximities to        airport and highway, and the like), and/or inputting at least        one set of business scenario data (e.g., sets of capital budget,        operating budget, utilities and other input consumption, and/or        employment projections);    -   (h) Selecting one or more candidate locations within said        candidate folder and one or more of said business scenarios for        use in financial calculations; and    -   (i) Performing one or more financial calculations on the        selected business scenario(s) wherein said financial        calculations are selected from:        -   Direct Community Benefit Report;        -   Indirect Community Benefit Report;        -   Incentive Package Report;        -   Best of all Worlds analysis;        -   Detailed Financial calculations; and        -   Financial Summary calculations.

According to a further aspect, there is provided a method comprising:

-   -   (a) Inputting a data set containing one or more demographic        and/or economic criteria and one or more search criteria of        demographic data and/or economic data for ranking locations        (e.g., unemployment rates, high school graduation rates, and/or        proximity to a seaport);    -   (b) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or more of        candidate locations contained within a Candidate Folder        dependent on how well each location satisfies each of the        individual search criterion;    -   (c) Displaying the candidate locations in ranked order;    -   (d) Optionally displaying an overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion for each candidate in the ranking wherein        the scores reflect how well the candidates satisfy all of the        criteria and/or individual criterion;    -   (e) Optionally displaying the overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion of each candidate in the ranking based on a        weighting, selected by the user, of each of the individual        criterion's relative importance in the decision-making, e.g.,        from most important to least important;    -   (f) Optionally displaying the score each candidate received        based on the relative importance of the collective search        criteria compared to the financial result;    -   (g) Inputting at least one set of project specifications (e.g.,        size of desired building, size of desired land parcel, workforce        size and composition, utility requirements, proximities to        airport and highway, and the like), and/or inputting at least        one set of business scenario data (e.g., sets of capital budget,        operating budget, utilities and other input consumption, and/or        employment projections);    -   (h) Selecting one or more candidate locations within said        candidate folder and one or more of said business scenarios for        use in financial calculations; and    -   (i) Performing one or more financial calculations on the        selected business scenario(s) wherein said financial        calculations are selected from:        -   Direct Community Benefit Report;        -   Direct Community Benefit Report;        -   Incentive Package Report;        -   Best of all Worlds analysis;        -   Detailed Financial calculations; and        -   Financial Summary calculations.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided amethod comprising:

-   -   (a) Selecting a geographic scope for the search for a potential        location (such as the United States, Eastern United States, New        England region of the United States, Maine, etc.) in which to        make a capital investment in a business operation or facility;    -   (b) Inputting a data set containing one or more search criteria        of demographic and/or economic data and one or more search        criteria of demographic data and/or economic data for screening        potential locations (e.g., unemployment rates and other labor        force statistics, proximity to airports or interstate highways,        tax rates, percentages of white collar and blue collar        employment, quality of life factors, etc.);    -   (c) Screening a database containing a listing of possible        locations within the selected geographic scope (e.g., a listing        of all counties within the United States) with a set of criteria        regarding demographic and/or economic data associated with each        location to determine which locations satisfy the search        criteria;    -   (d) Displaying a list of candidate locations that satisfy the        search criteria;    -   (e) Optionally editing the list of candidate locations to:        delete one or more locations; add one or more locations selected        from the database (irrespective of whether they meet any of the        search criteria); and/or input new candidate locations        (irrespective of whether they meet any of the search criteria);    -   (f) Saving the list (edited or unedited) of candidate locations,        along with their associated economic and/or demographic data, in        a Candidate Folder;    -   (g) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or more of the        candidate locations contained within the Candidate Folder        dependent on how well each location satisfies each of the        individual search criterion;    -   (h) Displaying the candidate locations in ranked order;    -   (i) Optionally displaying an overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion for each candidate in the ranking wherein        the scores reflect how well the candidates satisfy all of the        criteria and/or individual criterion;    -   (j) Optionally displaying the overall cumulative score and/or        score per criterion of each candidate in the ranking based on a        weighting, optionally selected by the user, of each of the        individual criterion's relative importance in the        decision-making, e.g., from most important to least important;    -   (k) Optionally displaying the score each candidate received        based on the relative importance of the collective search        criteria compared to the financial result;    -   (l) Inputting at least one set of project specifications (e.g.,        size of desired building, size of desired land parcel, workforce        size and composition, utility requirements, proximities to        airport and highway, and the like), and/or inputting at least        one set of business scenario data (e.g., sets of capital budget,        operating budget, utilities and other input consumption, and/or        employment projections);    -   (m) Selecting one or more candidate locations within said        candidate folder and one or more of said business scenarios for        use in financial calculations; and    -   (n) Performing one or more financial calculations on the        selected business scenario(s) wherein said financial        calculations are selected from:        -   Direct Community Benefit Report;        -   Indirect Community Benefit Report;        -   Incentive Package Report;        -   Best of all Worlds analysis;        -   Detailed Financial calculations; and        -   Financial Summary calculations.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Calculating and displaying estimated costs of business start-up        and/or costs of ongoing operations for candidate locations        within a Candidate Folder.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Ranking, weighing, and/or scoring candidate locations within a        Candidate Folder based on financial cost, weighted search        criteria, and/or relative importance of criteria to financial        costs and displaying the result(s).

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Inputting changes in business scenarios, project specifications,        and/or economic data and calculating and displaying estimated        costs of business start-up and/or costs of ongoing operations        for candidate locations within a Candidate Folder.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Performing and displaying a “Best of All Worlds” analysis        wherein the best, or lowest, cost attributes among candidate        locations are highlighted and aggregated in a summary to show a        hypothetical location that would contain in, one place the best        cost elements that the candidate locations collectively possess.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Generating and displaying a Direct Community Benefit Report that        shows for a selected candidate location and for each year of a        selected business scenario, the income tax, the revenue tax,        property tax, sales tax, and the total thereof (i.e., total        direct benefits), before or after incentives associated with the        candidate location are applied.

According to a further aspect, the invention farther comprises:

-   -   Generating and displaying an Indirect Community Benefit Report        wherein the user inputs a community multiplier, for example,        7.0, and this value is used to generate an Indirect Community        Benefit Report which displays, for a selected location and for        each year of a selected business scenario, the total wages and        the “multiplier effect” or beneficial economic impact of these        wages on the location.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Generating and displaying an Incentive Package Report that        shows, for a selected location and for each and/or all of the        years of a selected business scenario, the credits, reductions,        abatements, or other assistance offered by the location selected        with regards to income tax, property tax, sales tax, training        costs, labor costs, utility costs and miscellaneous other costs        for each and/or all of the years in a selected business        scenario, in terms of actual costs and/or the net present value        thereof.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Performing and displaying Detailed Financial Calculations which        combine a selected business scenario with a selected candidate        location's economic factors and which displays, for example, (1)        individual costs and the overall costs of doing business        associated with that location under the selected scenario (e.g.,        the costs of capital investment, income taxes, revenue taxes,        labor, property taxes, utilities, sales taxes, insurance,        transportation, training, other miscellaneous costs, and the sum        thereof), wherein the displayed costs are calculated on the        basis of before and after any the application of any incentives        associated with the candidate location, and/or (2) the resultant        net income or loss for each year of the selected business        scenario after applying the overall pre-incentive costs and        post-incentive costs, and optionally the cumulative net income        or loss, based on pre-incentive costs and post-incentive costs,        for the entire time span of the business scenario.

According to a further aspect, the invention further comprises:

-   -   Performing and displaying Financial Summary calculations and        comparisons and, optionally, generating comparison graphs (e.g.,        bar graphs).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various other features and attendant advantages of the present inventionwill be more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understoodwhen considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in whichlike reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughoutthe several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a general flow chart of the system functions forcreating a “project,” inputting General Information, and creating one ormore Business Scenarios; and

FIG. 2 illustrates a general flow chart of the system functions forLocation Screening and Selecting, ranking of Candidate Locations, andperforming Financial Calculations; and

FIGS. 3 a-3 o illustrate a demonstration of a software embodiment inaccordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Optimized selection of a new business location is typically beyond theexpertise of most management personnel. An easy-to-use computer systemfor rapidly and accurately making such a business decision wouldpreferably have “user-friendly interface” and feature simplequery-driven forms or menus for entering desired business dataparameters. Such a system would incorporate local infrastructure costs(i.e. taxes, constriction costs, and utilities) and available amenities(i.e. nearness to public and private transportation terminals) both forthe present and the future. Having a system with such characteristicswould provide a user with the ability to generate a list of businessdecision choices, determine the optimal choice, and create supportingreports as to profitability and usefulness of a particular location.Further, having a system with the ability to create “What if?” scenarioswould provide the capability of using both input and output data rangesfor comparisons in the decision making-process. The inventive methodprovides such a system.

The inventive method can be used by companies, economic developmentauthorities, or their related service providers for projects thatinvolve development, expansion, consolidation, location, relocation,merger, acquisition, or disposition of business operations orfacilities. Just about every company during its existence will face oneof these decisions at least once. Conversely, EDAs get involved in manysuch projects each year, as do related service providers. Because theseprojects are often capital-intensive in nature, they need to proceed inas productively and cost-effectively a manner as possible, to aid thecompany in competing successfully, both domestically and globally. Theinventive method enables the user to, among other things, performinitial investigations into such projects in a very cost efficient andflexible manner.

The method can be used for any number ways to facilitate capitalinvestment decisions including: data collection, management, andanalysis for capital investment projects; overall capital investmentproject management; business location and site selections; competitivebenchmarking for companies and/or EDAs; comparative financial analysisand modeling for alternative business decisions; and offering, tracking,and measuring project negotiation deal points.

Due to the method's flexibility and its ability to handle hypotheticalscenarios, the method provides a useful tool for negotiations inselecting locations and their component transactions. Any party to acapital investment project (e.g., a company or an EDA) can use themethod to determine, for example: (a) whether the costs (e.g., propertytaxes or other attributes) with respect to a particular transaction orlocation are more beneficial, less beneficial or comparable to the costsor other attributes of other transactions or locations; and (b) whatwould be the resultant effect of individual and/or cumulative changes ina transaction's or location's attributes stemming from negotiationoffers or concessions.

In an exemplary process, if the user is interested in finding a locationfor building a new factory somewhere within a general geographiclocation, such as the United States, the methods of the presentinvention provide the user with the ability to quickly and easily arriveat and generate an output listing of candidate locations (e.g.,counties) based on one or more specified demographic and/or economicsearch criteria. This is referred to as the Screening procedure orprocess. Once this list of candidate locations is generated, the usercan then create a group of candidate locations for consideration is andplace this group in a Candidate Folder. This is referred to as theSelection procedure or process. For example, the Candidate Folder maycontain: one or more selections from the list of candidate locationsgenerated by the Screening procedure; one or more candidates manuallyselected by the user from the database; one or more candidates createdfrom other candidates (e.g., copying an existing candidate to create ahypothetical candidate with some or most of the same attributes, butwith one or more hypothetical or proposed different attributes such aslower utility rates); or combinations thereof.

After creating the Candidate Folder, the user can then rank thecandidate locations as to how well they satisfy the specified searchcriteria. In performing this ranking of candidate locations, the usercan weight individual criteria.

In addition, after creating a Candidate Folder, a user can then utilizethe inventive methods to perform financial calculations for each or allof the candidate locations based on one or more business scenarioscreated by the user. Such financial calculations can provide, forexample, estimates on property tax, property tax incentives, alternativeproperty tax, income tax, income tax reductions, utility costs and/ortransportation costs. Further, these financial calculations can bedetermined over a series of years based upon projected scenarios set tipby the user.

The inventive method can also provide a listing of general financialcalculations for each of the candidate locations. The calculations caninclude, for example, business scenario-dependent, business-scenarioindependent, location-dependent, and location-independent capitalinvestment, workforce, utility, transportation, supplies and tax costs.These general financial calculations provide the cost before and afterincentives for each of the scenarios presented by the user.

Overall, the method involves several general sub-processes orprocedures, i.e. data input; location screening, location selection;candidate ranking; and financial modeling. These procedures, which aredescribed in further detail below, can be performed in a variety ofcombinations. For example, location screening and/or selection can beperformed without performing candidate ranking or without performingfinancial modeling. Similarly, location selection can be performedwithout performing location screening. Also, while some data input isneeded to perform location screening, location screening can beperformed without inputting other data that is needed for financialmodeling or for simple user identification. The procedures can also beperformed in various sequences, for example, financial modeling can beperformed before or after candidate ranking.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the user is promptedfor specific criteria (demographic and/or economic) that are to be usedin the screening and selection process. In response, the user enters thesearch criteria, preferably using a computer keyboard, touch screen, ora mouse. The software then performs a screening operation wherein adatabase containing a listing of locations and associated demographicand/or economic data is searched based on the selected search criteria.The user can then create a Candidate Folder containing one or more oflocations derived from the screening process and/or one or more manuallyselected locations. The software also allows the user to input one ormore business scenarios, before or after creating a Candidate Folder,and then perform financial modeling calculations on candidate locationswithin a created candidate folder using on or more of the createdbusiness scenarios.

The software can be installed on a user's computer, e.g., on a harddrive, on a zip drive, on a floppy disk, or on a CD ROM drive.Preferably, the software is made available to the user's computer usingan “applications service provider” approach by the user's accessing thesoftware, via an internet connection, on a cent-al secure computer. Inparticular, the method utilizes a web-based project management anddecision modeling software system which exhibits the following features:

-   -   A database of locations and associated economic and/or        demographic data (e.g., a database of all counties in the United        States);    -   The capability of inputting data on project specifications        and/or projections of a company's alternative business and        financial scenarios;    -   The capability to screen the database using demographic and/or        economic search criteria to generate a list of candidate        locations;    -   The capability to rank locations according to criteria selected        and, optionally, weighted by the user;    -   The capability to calculate relative start up and operating        costs for specified locations;    -   The capability to determine the bottom line results for the        different decision choices;    -   The capability of determine optimal operating environment for a        particular business operation or facility.

The databases that are suitable for use with the system will contain agroup of locations, preferably within a certain geographic region. Foreach location, the database will contain a set of demographic and/oreconomic data. In the discussion below, the example database is one thatcontains a listing of counties within the United States. Other similardatabases could be utilized, for example, a database on locations withinNorth America or within Europe or within New York State.

The database of locations and associated economic and/or demographicdata should be secure. That is, a user should not be able to alter thedata within the database. However, once the user has included one ormore candidate locations in a Candidate Folder, the user is then,preferably, able to change a given candidate location's data as desired.This will, for example, permit a user to update the data for a givencandidate location or to simply fill in missing data. Also, a user canuse this editing capability to examine a candidate location's attributesusing hypothetical or negotiation-derived data.

Using a computer, a user initiates the software program that may, forexample, initially present the user with a Project Guide which willpermit the user to quickly move from one procedure to another within thesoftware. The software can prompt the user to create a capitalinvestment project by setting up a Project Folder or to select apreviously established Project Folder. If the user decides to create anew Project Folder, the user can start begin by selecting from theProject Guide the option to input general information. Upon selectingthis option, the software prompts the user to input data concerningthree classes of general information:

-   -   (1) Company identification information;    -   (2) Project requirement information (or project specifications);        and    -   (3) Business scenario(s).        See the flowchart of FIG. 1.

These three classes of information can be inputted in any order, e.g.,business scenario data can be inputted before inputting companyidentification data. As discussed further below, the system alsopreferably prompts the user to input other categories of data, such asdemographic and/or economic data that is missing from the main database(i.e., to “complete” candidate records as described below). Otheroptional aspects concerning data input are the ability to createhypothetical locations (e.g., by changing the attributes of an existinglocation) and the ability to assign “weight” to factors selected by theuser for ranking locations.

The “company identification” data set is used to identify the user forthe proposed project(s). The “project specification” data set includesgeneral preferences as to definitional factors or parameters for theproject (e.g., budgeted cost for the land, estimates on utility usage,estimates on workforce needed.) The user also can input site specificdata, such as minimum and maximum site sizes, building size anddimensions, desired zoning, desired start date of operations, andcomments about the desired site, among other details. The third data setis the “business scenario” data. For this set of data, the user createsone or more business scenarios for the proposed project by identifyingcapital, utility, workforce, logistics, and other costs, needs andrequirements that may vary by or be dependent upon the location, and/orthat may be necessary to complete for cost projections over at least oneand preferably several years.

The “company identification” data set generally includes information toidentify the interested entity. This information is optional and ispreferably stored for reference purposes. The general information inthis data set can include, for example, the name of the company, thetype of business involved (e.g., manufacturing, importing, services,etc.), the company's current address and contact information (e.g.,telephone number, telefax number, e-mail, etc.). Additionalidentification information can include, for example, the standardindustrial classification codes (i.e., SIC code) or similar suchclassification codes (e.g., The Northern American IndustrialClassification System Code or NAICS code). The SIC and NAICS codes maybe important as some states apply various incentives to companies incertain SIC/NAICS codes. Preferably, the software provides the user witha listing of these codes. While this data is mainly for useridentification, storing this data in the Project Folder provides aconvenient repository for relevant information regarding the project.For instance, a user could consult the project folder when an EDA asksthe user for its SIC or NAICS codes because some local regulationsand/or incentive programs might be dependent on these codes.

As noted in general the “company identification” data is optional andnot required for other processes within the system. However, some datafrom this set can be used in other procedures, particularly financialmodeling. For example, the “home” state and county for the company canbe required for performing some financial calculations in order toestablish a baseline for labor costs. In other words, this “home”location is the location upon which the employee information used indetermining labor costs is based. In short, the system uses a labor costindex from federal labor statistics. When performing financial modeling,to reflect local variations in the payroll of a business operation, thesoftware can, for example, multiply each candidate location's specificindex number by the company's projected labor costs, which costs arederived from (i) the headcount projection in a given Business Scenariomultiplied by (ii) computer-calculated prevailing average wage or salaryfigure for that company based on the workforce categories, employeenumbers, and home state and county-based wages/salaries that the userinput in the project specifications section.

The “project specification” data set includes certain generalpreferences with respect to the prospective location. For this data set,the user is prompted to input data on the proposed project, preferablywith regard to at least three categories: budgeted investments,utilities, and employees. The budgeted investments category may includecost estimates for land, buildings, and machinery and equipment (M&E),and training. Budgeted investments for land building and M&E may beutilized by the user for establishing a baseline to be used for thebusiness scenarios. This information is not required. The trainingbudget estimate is the expected cost of training or retraining theworkforce. It is preferred that this value be inputted by the user as itwill be used in at least some calculations in the Financial Modelingprocedure.

The utility category of data includes estimates for utility usages,e.g., expected monthly electrical usage (kilowatt hours) expectedelectrical demand (KVA), expected monthly gas usage (CCF), expectedaverage monthly water usage (gallons), and/or expected average monthlysewer usage (gallons). The utilities information is not required but canbe used as a reference for creating the business scenarios and duringthe search for specific locations.

The employee category is preferably broken down into differentsubcategories of employees, e.g., management, supervisors, operations,and support. For each of these subcategories, the user can input anaverage annual wage for the group of employees and the number ofemployees needed in each group. The ratio of the four types of employeesgenerated in the project specifications data set can be used tocalculate an average pay rate. In financial modeling, this average willbe multiplied by the number of employees determine the total employmentcosts. In financial modeling, the software utilizes a location costindex algorithm to establish the local employment costs for each of thecandidate locations based on their prevailing local rates, as opposed tothe prevailing rates in the company's current location if different.Thus for, subsequent financial modeling it is preferred the informationbe inputted for at least one employee subcategory.

As a fourth data category under project specifications, the user mayinput general preferences with respect to the location of the proposedproject. For example, the user can input preferences with respect to thestate, county and/or city, desired proximity to a metropolitan area,desired proximity to an airport facility, and/or the desired proximityto a highway system.

If any data from this or other data sets is required for, e.g.,subsequent financial modeling, this data can be indicated by thesoftware with, for example, an asterisk or other appropriate symbol.

Other information that could optionally be included in this data setincludes site specific information such as the date whereby the siteselection decision will be made, the date on which groundbreaking on thesite is intended, the date on which the site is to be operational, thedimensions of the site, whether an existing building is intended, thesize of the building, whether railroad access is required, etc.

For the “business scenario” data set, the user inputs projections forincome, employees, the investment for land, the investment for building,the M & E investment, gas usage, electric usage, water usage and soforth, for each scenario and for each year of the scenario. The businessscenarios data can be used in the Financial Modeling procedure toaccurately reflect the cost of doing business in any location under aparticular set of business projections. Because many outside influencescan affect a company, influences which are often beyond the company'scontrol, the software program permits the user to enter multiplescenarios that reflect the nature of the business under varying businessconditions. For example, optimistic, pessimistic and/or realistic (ormost likely) are typical scenarios to be considered. In addition, thescenarios preferably reflect a period of years rather than a singleyear. All projects, and many incentives, generally have a multi-yearlife. Thus, while each scenario may be set up for only one year,preferably the user inputs information concerning several years, e.g.,the first five or ten years of operation.

In creating a business scenario, the user is prompted for severalcategories of information. For example, the user is prompted to input adiscount rate (i.e., cost of money to the organization in teams of apercentage) and the federal tax (expected federal tax liability as apercentage of income). These two pieces of information are required forsubsequent financial modeling. To accurately reflect the capitalexpenditure, revenue, and expense streams, and the true value of anyincentives, a discount factor is applied to all cash flows andincentives.

For each year of the scenario in question, the user also inputs generalinformation concerning the operation of the facility. This informationincludes, for example, the year, total expected sales from the business(e.g., in dollar amounts), the total number of employees, information oncapital investments (e.g., land investment, building investment, M & Einvestment), monthly utility costs (e.g., gas, electric, water andsewer), transportation costs and other miscellaneous costs. The firstyear of the scenario should be the start of the project and, this, thefirst year of the business scenario often reflects initial capitalexpenditures, other start-up costs, and initial incentives.

As noted, the user can create more than one business scenario. Forexample, if a user wishes to investigate the effect of a lower discountrate, e.g., 6% as opposed to 6.5%, the user creates a second businessscenario using the lower discount rate. Alternatively, if the userwishes to investigate estimated sales increasing year to year at ahigher or slower rate, then the user creates a further scenario changingthe total sales for each year of the scenario.

There can be several ways to create a new scenario. The user may name anew scenario and then build the scenario cell by cell by inputting theappropriate values for each column. Additional rows (years) can beadded. After a scenario is established the user can edit an existingscenario to revise that scenario, can create a new scenario fromscratch, or can create a new scenario by initiating a “Save As” functionand then providing a new name for the existing scenario. The newscenario can then be established by editing the original values. Inaddition, a user can create a scenario using a commercial databasesoftware program, e.g., by exporting to the template from the softwareto Microsoft Excel® and then use the Excel® formula building and otherfunctions. The calculation results file can be imported back into theinventive software. The creation, viewing, and editing aspect of theBusiness Scenarios function are illustrated in the flowchart of FIG. 1.

Once this general information is inputted, the user can then initiatethe Location Screening procedure. See FIG. 2. Alternatively, the usercan go directly to the Location Screening procedure before inputting theBusiness Scenario information or even before inputting any of theCompany Information and/or Project Specification Information. As noted,these basic sets of data can be entered in any order. However, beforefinancial modeling can be adequately performed, the Business Scenarioinformation should be entered. In addition, preferably all of thegeneral information is entered before financial modeling. Further, aswill be discussed later, at least one Candidate Folder containing atLeast one candidate location should be created before financial modelingis performed.

Location Screening is the process of narrowing the search for locationsthat might meet the needs of a business. In this procedure, suitablelocations are screened from the database based on demographic and/oreconomic criteria. The software prompts the user to enter select ageographic region (e.g., all of United States, the Mid Atlantic regionof the United States, etc.) and then to enter search criteria for thecandidate sites. For example, the user selects which demographic and/oreconomic criteria as search criteria from a general list. This listconsists of at least some, if not all, of the demographic and/oreconomic data associated with each location entered in the database. Thesearch criteria are then used by the software program to search thegeneral database of locations (e.g., all states and all counties andpossibly some, if not all, cities within the U.S.-in Virginia, thecities, are independent jurisdictions analogous to counties). Locationsmay be screened based on adherence to any combination of criteria withinthe parameters of the database. The user can modify this listing ofcandidate sites by further redefining criteria, adding further criteria,or eliminating criteria.

The search criteria can be divided into two sections, i.e., demographicand economic. Preferable, the search criteria are demographic in nature.However, the search criteria can be economic in nature or include bothdemographic and economic factors. Preferably, only a demographic searchis used for candidate selection. Utilizing economic factors, takenwithout the underlying application of those factors, can be misleading.For instance, screening based on property tax rates without factoring inthe assessment ratio may give misleading results. However, there may besituations in which searching using such factors is appropriate.

For example, in terms of demographic search criteria, the user may inputcriteria concerning the labor force at the state level, such as, thepercent of elections won by unions over the past five years, the totalunion elections conducted over the last five years, and/or whether it isa “right to work” or “employment at will” state. On a county level theuser may input search criteria concerning general demographics, laborforce, quality of life and/or transportation. For example, with regardsto general county demographics, the user might input as search criteriatotal population (for example, ≧500,000), a projected percent populationgrowth (for example, at least 0.5% over the next ten years), the medianage of residents within the county, the median income of residentswithin the county, per capita income within the county, the netmigration, the percentage of high school graduates the percentage ofwhite collar workers, and the percentage of blue collar workers. Withregards to labor force on a county level, the user might input searchcriteria concerning, for example, the unemployment rate, laborparticipation rate, and the percentages of the workforce employed inconstruction, transportation, communication and public utilities, thewholesale trade, the retail trade, the financial sector, insurancesector, service industry, and/or public administration. As for qualityof life at the county level, the user might input search criteriaconcerning, for example, crime index, annual rainfall, annual snowfall,cooling degree days, heating degree days, and whether the county meetsfederal standards for levels of carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide,ozone, particulate matter, and sulfur dioxide. Cooling degree days arean indication of the annual cooling requirement for a location andheating degree days are an indication of the annual heating requirementfor a location. The cooling degree days for a particular date isdetermined by the sum of the date's high and low temperatures divided bytwo. This value is averaged for that particular date over a certain timeperiod (e.g., 30 years). If the average is less than 65, it is a heatingdegree day but is not a cooling degree day. If it is more than 65, it isa cooling degree day but is not a heating degree day.

In addition, the user can input criteria concerning for example,transportation at a county level such as number of miles to the nearestinterstate highway, number of interstate highways within the county,number of miles to the nearest commercial airport, number of miles tothe nearest seaport, and number of seaport within the county.

Regarding economic criteria, again the user may input a variety ofinformation specific to the state and/or county. For example, the usermight input criteria concerning tax rates such as the state income taxrate(s), the percentage of federal tax payments deductible from stateincome, state revenue tax rate(s), state personal income tax rates,state sales tax rates, state sales tax rate for manufacturing equipment,and state property tax rates. In terms of labor force at the statelevel, the user might input criteria concerning, for example, theaverage cost of worker's compensation and the unemployment insurancetaxable base. It is also possible to input criteria and data concerningstatutory incentives such as the state training incentives rate. Also,during negotiations, the user might input data on negotiated training orother state level incentives. On a county level, the user might inputinformation concerning, for example, the real estate tax rate, tangibleproperty tax rate, and/or local revenue or license tax rates. Inaddition, the user might input information concerning the utility coston a county level, e.g., the industrial electrical rate, the commercialelectric rate, the natural gas rate, water rate, and sewer rate, as wellas county-level statutory and negotiated incentives.

The screening process can be modified any number of times to narrow thechoices to meet the user's requirements. A search can be created byselecting any of the desired search criteria and inputting the desiredsearch criteria values. The user can change the qualifiers (>, =, <, ≦,≧). The search can be conducted by requiring of that all or any of thesearch criteria. The software then screens the database and displays alist of all locations that met the search criteria. At the bottom of thelist, there can be a display that shows the number of locations forwhich the search criteria was missing. After conducting a search, thesearch criteria can be saved to a folder. A listing of all the criteriaused for any saved search can be displayed by clicking an icon. Thesaved search can be modified and re-run to expand or restrict theoriginal results.

As noted, the search can be conducted using various geographicalparameters. Thus, the user can search for candidates only withinselected regions, for example, the southwestern United States.Alternatively, the user can request that the search be performed onlywithin a specific area, e.g., a specific state or county.

As mentioned, upon completion of the database search, the softwaredisplays to the user a list of candidate locations, e.g., a list ofsuitable counties within the United States. For each of the candidatelocations, the user can request details on the candidates and thesoftware will display to the user all the data (i.e., whether from thesystem database or data manually entered by the user) on the state andcounty level with respect to all possible criteria. In other words, ifthe search was performed on only one criterion such as a totalpopulation within the county of 500,000 or less, the details on thecandidates displayed by the software will include not only the totalpopulation of the county but also, for example, the real estate tax ratefor the county, corporate income tax rate for the state, theunemployment rate for the county, the annual inches of snowfall for thecounty, the number of interstate highways within the county, etc.

Once the candidate list is generated, the user can then choose whichcandidates to be included in a Candidate folder. For example, if thelist generated by the search included candidates in Hawaii and/orAlaska, and the user was interested only in sites in the contiguous 48states, then the user can choose not to transfer the candidates fromHawaii and Alaska to the candidate folder.

In addition, the user can add to the Candidate Folder locations that thesearch did not turn up. For example, the user can perform a separatesearch but limit the search to a specific county. The displayed resultsof this quick selection would be one location, i.e., the specifiedcounty, which could then be transferred to a Candidate Folder.

One preferred procedure for setting tip the entries in the CandidateFolder is to use a clipboard function. The clipboard acts as a temporarysystem folder used to hold potential candidates on an interim basisprior to being placed in the Candidate Folder. When the results of aregular screening search, or a quick search as described above, aredisplayed, the software can display each location with a clipboard iconnext to it. By selecting the clipboard icon, the location is transferredto the clipboard folder. During this procedure, the software can displayto the user not only the list of search results, but also the contentsof the clipboard folder. Once the user has transferred all of thedesired locations to the clipboard folder, the contents of the clipboardfolder can then be transferred to a created Candidate Folder.

In addition to the screening and quick selection procedures describedabove, the software permits the user to create a new and improved, orhypothetical location, from an existing location within the CandidateFolder by modifying that location's data. Further, the user can create anew location from an existing one within the Candidate Folder byoverlaying the attributes of a city or town within that location on topof that location's location-wide attributes. This procedure can be usedif, for instance, the user is interested in a site within a certaintown's boundaries and/or sites both within that town and outside thattown but all within the same location. In this example, the user wouldthen be able to compare the aggregate taxes and other costs of doingbusiness at a site within the town limits to those at a site outside thetown limits but within the same county.

The user can create multiple Candidate Folders for each Project. Thesoftware displays the name of each folder established for a Projectalong with the total number of candidate locations in that folder. Also,the software indicates whether each of the candidate locations have a“complete” data record or “incomplete” data record. If a candidaterecord contains all the necessary rate data on which to performfinancial modeling, then the software characterizes it as a “complete”record. Conversely, if the candidate location's record does not containall the necessary rate data on which to perform financial modeling, thenit is characterized by the software as a “incomplete” record. As can beseen, a candidate location record can be incomplete with respect to somenonessential data but still characterized as complete. Completedcandidate records are preferable over incomplete candidate records forperforming financial modeling. If financial modeling is performed usingincomplete candidate records, the likely result will be incomplete orotherwise inaccurate financial calculations. To complete a record, thesystem shows the user for each incomplete candidate location record whatdata is necessary to convert the record into a complete candidaterecord. The user can then modify the details of the incomplete record byinputting the missing data. The creation and manipulation of CandidateFolders, including the editing and completing of candidate records, areillustrated in the flowchart of FIG. 2.

The detailed demographic and/or economic data associated with a givenlocation can be displayed by the software by, for example, clicking thelocation's name. Any categories of missing “required data” will also bedisplayed. In addition, the software can provide the user with theability to input “notes” directed to a given location, e.g., by clickingon a “notes” icon. Detailed information about the taxes, incentives andfinancing could also be displayed by, e.g., clicking on an “information”icon. Once a location is entered into a Candidate Folder, the user canupdate, supplement, or otherwise change the data shown for that locationas found in the system's database without changing the data in thesystem's database.

By selecting a Candidate Folder, e.g., by clicking the name of anyCandidate Folder or the clipboard folder, the software can display thenames of all locations in that folder along with the saved searchcriteria, if any, associated with that folder. If no search criteria issaved for the folder (e.g., the folder consists of only locationsmanually selected by the user, that is candidates that were not obtainedby screening the database with selected search criteria), the systemsoftware permits the user to associate criteria with the folder. Thiswill permit the user to perform ranking of the candidate locations, asdiscussed below. Alternatively, the software will also permit the userto modify the search criteria and then associate the modified criteriawith a Candidate Folder for use in ranking the candidates.

Once the user has created a Candidate Folder, the software permits theuser to create a Candidate Matrix. The software prompts the user toselect two or more candidate locations from the Candidate Folder. Thesoftware then prompts the user to request creation of a matrix wherebythe software presents each of the selected locations and theirassociated demographic and/or economic data in a side-by-side format foreasy comparison.

The candidates can be ranked based on how well they met the savedcriteria associated with the Candidate Folder. See the flowchart of FIG.2. Candidates to be ranked are selected and then the user initiates the“Rank, By Saved Criteria” function Of the software. In this procedure,the software displays the total points for a location and its rankingbased on the saved search criteria. By initiating a “Show Detail”function of the software, the user is presented with a display of thedetails of the ranking process. For example, for each criterion everycandidate can be ranked with the best candidate (e.g. the candidate thatcomes closest to or exceeds the specified value of that criterion)getting a maximum score or point level (e.g., the maximum points percriterion is the total number of candidates in the ranking). If acandidate does not meet the criterion search level it could be givenzero posts. Zero points could also be given if the data are missing.

The system can, under a default setting, assess each criterion equally.Alternatively, the software provides the user with the ability to assignweights to the criteria, based on their degree of importance relative toeach other. Then, the process can calculate the scores mentioned abovewith regard to the different weights assigned by the user to thesecriteria, to provide weighted scores. Further, the user may decide toreassess these weights and thus have the process recalculate the scoresusing different relative weights of importance.

The software adds the scores for each candidate and for each criterion,whether differentially or evenly weighted, and arrives at a score forall selected candidates based on all criteria taken as a whole. Thesoftware also then can display the list of candidates in ranked orderaccordingly to their scores, for example, from highest score to lowestscore.

In addition to the ranking procedure, once a candidate folder iscreated, the user may also use the software to perform FinancialModeling on individual locations within the candidate folder. See theflowchart of FIG. 2. Financial Modeling combines the specific companydata with the candidate location data in a process to establish a “costof doing business” for that location. The model does not establish allcosts associated with a business, but computes costs that are likely tochange based on the location. Alternatively, the user can include allthe location-independent costs in the “Other Costs” category in theBusiness Scenarios. This category can be used to tale into accountlocation-dependent costs that are not otherwise listed in the BusinessScenario template.

The formulas used for performing the financial calculations are wellknown within the art. The software provides an easy and convenientmethod to perform such calculations quickly on one or more candidatelocations and/or under one or more business scenarios. Further, thesoftware preferably utilizes formulas that will take into accountcalculations particular to a specific location. For example, a locationmay have a particular format for determining property tax assessments.The software will determine the property tax assessment in accordancewith the location's particular method of assessment. The calculationwill provide the users with a value for the resultant tax and thuspermit the user to make an “apples-to-apples” comparison among theassessments as computed by various locations. In addition, the softwarepreferably provides the user with the ability to select which formula touse for certain calculations that have various acceptable methods ofdetermination. For example, the software can permit the user to selectwhether to use a straight-line depreciation formula or adouble-declining depreciation formula.

Thus, in the Financial Modeling stage of the process, the user firstselects a candidate folder. Upon selecting a candidate folder, thesoftware displays to the user the list of candidate locations within thefolder and then provides the user with the opportunity to generate avariety of reports. In order to proceed with Financial Modeling, thesoftware preferably requires that at least one candidate have “complete”data. Candidate Folders, which contain candidates with complete records,will be shown when Financial Modeling is initiated.

By selecting a Candidate Folder having at least one candidate withcomplete data, the Financial Modeling procedure provides a list of thecomplete candidates and prompts the user to request DetailedCalculations on any of the complete candidates individually under any ofthe business scenarios. The Detailed Calculations combine a singlebusiness scenario with a single location's economic factors. Thelocation and the business scenario can be changed to run anotherDetailed Calculation.

The display of a Detailed Calculations can reproduce the details on theselected business scenario and then show the costs for each year of theselected business scenario. For example, the displayed costs can be theindividual costs and the overall costs of doing business associated withthat location under the selected scenario (e.g., the costs of capitalinvestment, income taxes, revenue taxes, labor, property taxes,utilities, sales taxes, insurance, transportation, training, othermiscellaneous costs, and the stun thereof). Also, these costs can bepresented on the basis of before and after any applicable incentives,i.e., Pre-Incentive costs and Post-Incentive Costs, respectively. ThePre-Incentive costs represent the capital and operating costs associatedwith that location and that scenario before taking into account anyapplicable statutory or negotiated incentives. The Post-Incentive costsrepresent those same costs after applying any applicable statutory ornegotiated incentives. The total Pre-Incentive and Post-Incentive costsfor all years of the business scenario can also be presented in terms ofactual total costs and/or net present value (NPV) of total costs. Inaddition, the Detailed Calculations can show the resultant incomes foreach year of the selected business scenario after applying the overallpre-incentive costs and post-incentive costs, as well as the totalincomes, based on pre-incentive costs and post-incentive costs, for theentire time span of the business scenario.

From the Detailed Calculation display, the software can prompt the userto request the generation of a Direct Community Benefit Report, anIndirect Community Benefit Report, and/or an Incentive Package Report.The Direct Community Benefit Report can display, for the selectedlocation and for each year of the selected business scenario, the incometax, the revenue tax, property tax, sales tax, and the total thereof(i.e., total direct benefits). Typically, these values are calculatedafter all incentives are applied. Also, this report can display thetotal for each of these components for the entire time span of theselected scenario (e.g., the total property taxes for the years2002-2010 under a most likely business scenario). From the display ofthe Direct Community Report, the software can prompt the user to createan Indirect Community Benefit Report. In this case, the user inputs acommunity multiplier, for example, 7.0, and the software then uses thisvalue to generate an Indirect Community Benefit Report which candisplay, for the selected location and for each year of the selectedbusiness scenario, the total wages and the multiplier benefit effect.The community multiplier is an economic impact concept that estimatesthe impact of a business operation on a community's economy bymultiplying the operation's payroll by a factor—that an economist maydetermine or that may be determined from certain benchmarks for certainkinds of companies or industries in certain kinds of communities. Thisfactor, or “the multiplier,” is intended to mirror or model the amountof times that a payroll dollar gets spent in the community, e.g., atlocal stores, before it finally “comes to rest” in a savings account,investment account, or other capital investment.

The Incentive Package Report can display to the user, for the selectedlocation and for each year of the selected business scenario, thecredits, reductions, abatements, or other assistance, offered by thelocation selected with regards to income tax, property tax, sales tax,training costs, labor costs, utility costs and miscellaneous other costsfor each of the years in a selected business scenario. Also, this reportcan display the total for each of these components for the entire timespan of the selected scenario (e.g., the total utility costs for theyears 2002-2010 under a most likely business scenario) in terms ofactual costs and the net present value thereof.

In Financial Modeling, in addition to the Detailed Calculations andassociated reports described above, the software can prompt the user tocreate a Candidate Information Matrix and/or to calculate a FinancialSummary. For these reports, the user is first prompted to select whichcandidate locations (or all candidate locations) within a givencandidate folder to be used in generating the reports.

For example, the user can select all of the candidate locations orindividual candidate locations and create a Candidate InformationMatrix. As mentioned above, this matrix provides a side by side displayof some or all the possible search criteria data, i.e., some or all ofthe demographic and/or economic data contained in the database for eachof these selected locations within the Candidate Folder. The softwarecan also prompt the user to generate this Candidate Information Matrixprior to entering the Financial Modeling procedure, i.e., when thesoftware displays to the user the locations within a selected candidatefolder.

For the Financial Summary, as mentioned, the software first prompts theuser to select the candidate locations to be considered in the report.Next, the software prompts the user to select one or more of thebusiness scenarios created for the project. For example, the user canchoose that all candidate locations within a folder be considered in theFinancial Summary and then select that a most likely business scenarioand a pessimistic business scenario be used in generating the report.

The software then generates a Financial Summary Report which displays aranking of the selected candidate location sites based on post-incentivecosts for the selected business scenario. For each candidate, the systemcan display post-incentive costs (ordered lowest to highest), thepercent difference among the individual locations based onpost-incentive costs, the pre-incentive costs, and the percentdifference among the individual Locations based on pre-incentive cost.The Financial Summary report can display these bottom line resultsnumerically and graphically. For example, a bar chart will show the NPVof the costs both before and after incentives.

In addition, from the Financial Summary Report the user has theopportunity to request more details concerning the post-incentive costsand the pre-incentive costs for the selected candidates. This can behelpful to establish the reason for the cost differential. Thisinvestigation can lead to negotiation, discussion-points, and furthercost analysis among the parties involved in the project.

If the user requests such details, the software displays to the user abreakdown of the components of, for example, the post-incentive costsfor each of the candidate locations. For example, post-incentive costscan include the sum of the capital investment, labor costs, income tax,revenue tax, property tax, utility costs, sales tax, insurance costs,transportation costs, training costs, and other costs, after applyingany incentive available in or offered by the particular location, andthe pre-incentive costs can include the sum of these same factorswithout applying any such incentive.

In these detailed Financial Summary reports, the software can highlightand then aggregate the best, or lowest, cost attributes among thecandidate locations in the summary to show the “Best of All Worlds,” thehypothetical location that would contain in one place the best costelements that the candidate locations collectively possess. This featurecan be used for benchmarking and negotiating decision choices.

Using the information provided by the system, e.g., the reportsgenerated by the Financial Modeling, the user is able to make aneducated and well-informed decision concerning available capitalinvestment choices for business operations and facilities. The user canthen further investigate one or more of the candidates for theavailability of suitable specific land or land and building sites.

The software also can collect, store, or, via website links, provideaccess to site-specific data. Typically, however, the main differencesin costs of doing business are at the location (e.g., county) level,i.e., in the location's attributes, not in the attributes among varioussites within that location (e.g., county). Nevertheless, the usercertainly can enter and use site-specific data as desired. The user candetermine the desired sites via accessing property databases, contactingEDAs, using real estate brokers, conducting site visits, or acombination of these. Once the user has done so, the user can input intothe software both site-specific data and also a location's attributesthat in fact may vary site-by-site (such as infrastructure costs,enterprise zone boundaries, and the like) for more detailed comparativeanalysis.

EXAMPLES Example 1

As mentioned above, FIGS. 3 a-3 o illustrate a demonstration of asoftware embodiment in accordance with the invention. This series ofFigures provides s general guide through several processes of theinvention, for example: initiating a project; inputting companyinformation; inputting project specifications; creating businessscenarios; screening a database for candidate locations; using aclipboard and creating Candidate Folders; ranking candidate locations;

-   -   displaying details of candidate locations; performing financial        calculations; creating and displaying Community Benefit reports;        creating and displaying Financial Summary reports; and Creating        and displaying a Best of All Worlds analysis.

See also the software embodiment available at www.dealtek.com.

The preceding examples can be repeated with similar success bysubstituting the generically or specifically described operatingconditions of this invention for those used in the preceding examples.

From the foregoing description, one skilled in the art can easilyascertain the essential characteristics of this invention and, withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope thereof, can make various changesand modifications of the invention to adapt it to various usages andconditions.

The entire disclosure of all applications, patents and publications,cited above and below, and of corresponding U.S. Provisional ApplicationSer. No. 60/359,338, filed Feb. 26, 2002, is hereby incorporated byreference.

1. A method for providing a list, based on selected criteria, ofcompetitive locations for a business operation or business facility,said method comprising: (a) Selecting a geographic scope for the searchfor a potential location in which to make a capital investment in abusiness operation or facility; (b) Inputting a data set containing oneor more search criteria of demographic data, economic data or both, andone or more search criteria of demographic data, economic data or bothfor screening potential locations; (c) Screening a database containing alisting of possible locations within the selected geographic scope witha set of criteria of demographic data, economic data or both associatedwith each location to determine which locations satisfy the searchcriteria; and (d) Displaying a list of candidate locations that satisfythe search criteria.
 2. A method according to claim 1, furthercomprising (e) editing said list of candidate locations to: delete oneor more locations; add one or more locations selected from the database;input new candidate locations; or combinations thereof.
 3. A methodaccording to claim 2, further comprising (f) saving the of candidatelocations, edited or unedited, along with their associated demographicdata, economic data or both, in a Candidate Folder.
 4. A methodaccording to claim 3, further comprising (g) creating a Candidate Matrixwhich displays all or selected locations from a Candidate Folder andtheir associated demographic data, economic data or both in aside-by-side format.
 5. A method according to claim 4, furthercomprising: (h) Inputting a data set containing one or more demographicand/or economic criteria for ranking locations; (i) Creating a Rankingof Candidates for two or more of candidate locations contained within aCandidate Folder according to how well each location satisfies each ofthe individual search criterion; (j) Displaying the candidate locationsin ranked order; and (k) Optionally displaying (k1) an overallcumulative score and/or score per criterion for each candidate in theranking wherein the scores reflect how well the candidates satisfy allof the criteria and/or an individual criterion; (k2) the overallcumulative score and/or score per criterion of each candidate in theranking based on a weighting, selected by the user, of each of theindividual criterion's relative importance in the decision-making,and/or (k3) displaying the score each candidate received based on therelative importance of the collective search criteria compared to thefinancial result.
 6. A method for providing a list of competitivelocations and capital investment transactions for a business operationor business facility, with the choices on the list being ranked andscored according to weighted or unweighted decision criteria, saidmethod comprising: (a) Inputting a data set containing one or moredemographic and/or economic criteria, and one or more search criteria ofdemographic data and/or economic data for ranking locations; (b)Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or more of candidate locationscontained within a Candidate Folder according to how well each locationsatisfies each of the individual search criterion; (c) Displaying thecandidate locations in ranked order; and (d) Optionally displaying (d1)an overall cumulative score and/or score per criterion for eachcandidate in the ranking wherein the scores reflect how well thecandidates satisfy all of the criteria and/or an individual criterion;(d2) the overall cumulative score and/or score per criterion of eachcandidate in the rankling based on a weighting, selected by the user, ofeach of the individual criterion's relative importance in thedecision-making, and/or (d3) displaying the score each candidatereceived based on the relative importance of the collective searchcriteria compared to the financial result.
 7. A method for providing alist of competitive locations and capital investment transactions for abusiness operation or business facility, with the choices on the listbeing ranked and scored according to weighted or unweighted decisioncriteria, said method comprising: (a) Inputting a data set containingone or more demographic and/or economic criteria and one or more searchcriteria of demographic data and/or economic data for ranking locations;(b) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or more of candidatelocations contained within a Candidate Folder dependent on how well eachlocation satisfies each of the individual search criterion; (c)Displaying the candidate locations in ranked order; and (d1) Beforeperforming step (b), selecting the weighting of individual rankingsearch or selection criteria; or (d2) After performing step (c),selecting the weighting of individual ranking search or selectioncriteria and repeating steps (b)-(c); (e) Optionally displaying (e1) anoverall cumulative score and/or score per criterion for each candidatein the ranking wherein the scores reflect how well the candidatessatisfy all of the criteria and/or an individual criterion; (e2) theoverall cumulative score and/or score per criterion of each candidate inthe ranking based on a weighting, selected by the user, of each of theindividual criterion's relative importance in the decision-making,and/or (e3) displaying the score each candidate received based on therelative importance of the collective search criteria compared to thefinancial result.
 8. A method for providing a list of competitivelocations and capital investment transactions for a business operationor business facility, with the choices on the list being ranked andscored according to weighted or unweighted decision criteria, saidmethod comprising: (a) Inputting a data set containing one or moredemographic and/or economic criteria and one or more search criteria ofdemographic data and/or economic data for searching or selectinglocations; (b) Screening a database or a Candidate Folder containing alisting of candidate locations with a set of criteria regardingdemographic and/or economic data associated with each location todetermine how well each location satisfies the search or selectioncriteria; (c) Generating a ranking of the candidate locations accordingto how well each location satisfies the search or selection criteria;(d) Optionally, editing the list of candidate locations to: delete oneor more locations; add one or more locations selected from the database;and/or input new candidate locations; and (f) Displaying each candidatelocation and its associated data relating to the ranking and,optionally, listing the candidates in a predetermined order.
 9. A methodfor providing a list of competitive locations and capital investmenttransactions for a business operation or business facility, with thechoices on the list being ranked and scored according to weighted orunweighted decision criteria, said method comprising: (a) Inputting adata set containing one or more demographic and/or economic criteria andone or more search criteria of demographic data and/or economic data forranking locations; (b) Screening a database or a Candidate Foldercontaining a listing of candidate locations with a set of criteriaregarding demographic and/or economic data associated with each locationto determine how each location satisfies the ranking criteria; (c)Generating a ranking of the candidate locations according to how welleach location satisfies the ranking criteria; (d) Displaying eachcandidate location and it associated data relating to the rankingcriteria and, optionally, listing the candidates in a predeterminedorder; and (e1) Before performing step (b), selecting the weighting ofindividual ranking criteria; or (e2) After performing step (c),selecting the weighting of individual ranking criteria and repeatingsteps (b)-(d); or (e3) After performing step (d), selecting or changingthe weighting of individual ranking criteria and repeating steps(b)-(d).
 10. A method according to claim 6, further comprising inputtingat least one set of project specifications, and/or inputting at leastone set of business scenario data.
 11. A method for providing a list ofcompetitive locations and capital investment transactions for a businessoperation or business facility, said method comprising: (a) Creating aCandidate Folder containing a group of candidate locations and theirassociated demographic and/or economic data by screening a databaseusing one or more search criteria, or by manually selecting candidatelocations from a database, or a combination thereof, (b) Before or after(a), inputting at least one set of project specifications, and/orinputting at least one set of business scenario data, (c) Selecting oneor more candidate locations within said candidate folder and one or moreof said business scenarios for use in financial calculations, (d)Performing one or more financial calculations on the selected businessscenario(s) wherein said financial calculations are selected from:Direct Community Benefit Report; Indirect Community Benefit Report;Incentive Package Report; Best of all Worlds analysis; DetailedFinancial calculations; and Financial Summary calculations.
 12. A methodfor providing a list of competitive locations and capital investmenttransactions for a business operation or business facility, said methodcomprising: (a) Selecting a geographic scope for the search for apotential location in which to make a capital investment in a businessoperation or facility; (b) Inputting a data set containing one or moresearch criteria of demographic and/or economic data and one or moresearch criteria of demographic data and/or economic data for screeningpotential locations; (c) Screening a database containing a listing ofpossible locations within the selected geographic scope with a set ofcriteria regarding demographic and/or economic data associated with eachlocation to determine which locations satisfy the search criteria; (d)Displaying a list of candidate locations that satisfy the searchcriteria; (e) Optionally editing the list of candidate locations to:delete one or more locations; add one or more locations selected fromthe database; and/or input new candidate locations; (f) Saving the listof candidate locations, edited or unedited, along with their (g)Inputting at least one set of project specifications, and/or inputtingat least one set of business scenario data; (h) Selecting one or morecandidate locations within said candidate folder and one or more of saidbusiness scenarios for use in financial calculations; and (i) Performingone or more financial calculations on the selected business scenario(s)wherein said financial calculations are selected from: Direct CommunityBenefit Report; Indirect Community Benefit Report; Incentive PackageReport; Best of all Worlds analysis; Detailed Financial calculations;and Financial Summary calculations.
 13. A method for providing a list ofcompetitive locations and capital investment transactions for a businessoperation or business facility, said method comprising: (a) Inputting adata set containing one or more demographic and/or economic criteria andone or more search criteria of demographic data and/or economic data forranking locations; (b) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two or moreof candidate locations contained within a Candidate Folder dependent onhow well each location satisfies each of the individual searchcriterion; (c) Displaying the candidate locations in ranked order; (d)Optionally displaying an overall cumulative score and/or score percriterion for each candidate in the ranking wherein the scores reflecthow well the candidates satisfy all of the criteria and/or an individualcriterion; (e) Optionally displaying the overall cumulative score and/orscore per criterion of each candidate in the ranking based on aweighting, selected by the user, of each of the individual criterion'srelative importance in the decision-making, e.g., from most important toleast important; (f) Optionally displaying the score each candidatereceived based on the relative importance of the collective searchcriteria compared to the financial result; (g) Inputting at least oneset of project specifications, and/or inputting at least one set ofbusiness scenario data; (h) Selecting one or more candidate locationswithin said candidate folder and one or more of said business scenariosfor use in financial calculations; and (i) Performing one or morefinancial calculations on the selected business scenario(s) wherein saidfinancial calculations are selected from: Direct Community BenefitReport; Direct Community Benefit Report; Incentive Package Report; Bestof all Worlds analysis; Detailed Financial calculations; and FinancialSummary calculations.
 14. A method for providing a list of competitivelocations and capital investment transactions for a business operationor business facility, said method comprising: (a) Selecting a geographicscope for the search for a potential location in which to male a capitalinvestment in a business operation or facility; (b) Inputting a data setcontaining one or more search criteria of demographic and/or economicdata and one or more search criteria of demographic data and/or economicdata for screening potential locations; (c) Screening a databasecontaining a listing of possible locations within the selectedgeographic scope with a set of criteria regarding demographic and/oreconomic data associated with each location to determine which locationssatisfy the search criteria; (d) Displaying a list of candidatelocations that satisfy the search criteria; (e) Optionally editing thelist of candidate locations to: delete one or more locations; add one ormore locations selected from the database; and/or input new candidatelocations; (f) Saving the list of candidate locations, edited orunedited, along with their associated economic and/or demographic data,in a Candidate Folder; (g) Creating a Ranking of Candidates for two ormore of the candidate locations contained within the Candidate Folderdependent on how well each location satisfies each of the individualsearch criterion; (h) Displaying the candidate locations in rankedorder; (i) Optionally displaying an overall cumulative score and/orscore per criterion for each candidate in the ranking wherein the scoresreflect how well the candidates satisfy all of the criteria and/or anindividual criterion; (j) Optionally displaying the overall cumulativescore and/or score per criterion of each candidate in the ranking basedon a weighting, optionally selected by the user, of each of theindividual criterion's relative importance in the decision-making; (k)Optionally displaying the score each candidate received based on therelative importance of the collective search criteria compared to thefinancial result; (l) Inputting at least one set of projectspecifications, and/or inputting at least one set of business scenariodata; (m) Selecting one or more candidate locations within saidcandidate folder and one or more of said business scenarios for use infinancial calculations; and (n) Performing one or more financialcalculations on the selected business scenario(s) wherein said financialcalculations are selected from: Direct Community Benefit Report;Indirect Community Benefit Report; Incentive Package Report; Best of allWorlds analysis; Detailed Financial calculations; and Financial Summarycalculations.
 15. A method according to claim 14, further comprisingcalculating and displaying estimated costs of business start-up and/orcosts of ongoing operations for candidate locations within a CandidateFolder.
 16. A method according to claim 14, further comprising ranking,weighing, and/or scoring candidate locations within a Candidate Folderbased on financial cost, weighted search criteria, and/or relativeimportance of criteria to financial costs and displaying the result(s).17. A method according to claim 14, further comprising inputting changesin business scenarios, project specifications, and/or economic data, andcalculating and displaying estimated costs of business start-up and/orcosts of ongoing operations for candidate locations within a CandidateFolder.
 18. A method according to claim 14, further comprisingperforming and displaying a Best of All Worlds analysis wherein thebest, or lowest, cost attributes among candidate locations arehighlighted and aggregated in a summary to show a hypothetical locationthat would contain in one place the best cost elements that thecandidate locations collectively possess.
 19. A method according toclaim 14, further comprising generating and displaying a DirectCommunity Benefit Report that shows for a selected candidate locationand for each year of a selected business scenario, the income tax, therevenue tax, property tax, sales tax, and the total thereof, before orafter incentives associated with the candidate location are applied. 20.A method according to claim 14, further comprising generating anddisplaying an Indirect Community Benefit Report wherein the user inputsa community multiplier, and this value is used to generate an IndirectCommunity Benefit Report which displays, for a selected location and foreach year of a selected business scenario, the total wages and the“multiplier effect” or beneficial economic impact of these wages on thelocation.
 21. A method according to claim 14, further comprisinggenerating and displaying an Incentive Package Report that shows, for aselected location and for each and/or all of the years of a selectedbusiness scenario, the credits, reductions, abatements, or otherassistance offered by the location selected with regards to income tax,property tax, sales tax, training costs, labor costs, utility costs andmiscellaneous other costs for each and/or all of the years in a selectedbusiness scenario, in terms of actual costs and/or the net present valuethereof.
 22. A method according to claim 14, further comprisingperforming and displaying Detailed Financial Calculations which combinea selected business scenario with a selected candidate location'seconomic factors and which displays (1) individual costs and the overallcosts of doing business associated with that location under the selectedscenario, wherein the displayed costs are calculated on the basis ofbefore and after any the application of any incentives associated withthe candidate location, and/or (2) the resultant net income or loss foreach year of the selected business scenario after applying the overallpre-incentive costs and post-incentive costs, and optionally thecumulative net income or loss, based on pre-incentive costs andpost-incentive costs, for the entire time span of the business scenario.23. A method according to claim 14, further comprising performing anddisplaying Financial Summary calculations and comparisons and,optionally, generating comparison graphs.